Old School Crappie Fishing Family Secrets

Crappie fishing enthusiasts are always looking for new and proven fishing information on how to use Crappie Live Bait. There are so many artificial crappie fishing baits on the market today you might ask why use live bait? Well the answer everyone should tell them selves to be effective you are going to use both. On many of my crappie fishing trips my rods are rigged with a combination of artificial and live baits. This is the best of both techniques. My article is going to concentrate on what crappie live baits are best for different situations.

Crappie minnows: There are so many minnows to choose from when you go to the bait store you are probably wondering what is best to use, well I will tell you what crappie minnows work best for me. I will also identify other types because every fishing location is different when it comes to crappie live bait. It’s best to check your area and determine what type of minnows are native to the area you are going to fish.

The “shiner minnow” work best for me to use, the smaller the better approximately 1 1/2″ in length. Many crappie anglers would argue that bigger is better, but the truth is I like to catch fish and I am not interested in only fishing for the large slabs. If you are one of the anglers who only fish for slab crappie then bigger is probably better,but I prefer to catch a lot of fish. The reason I like the shiner minnow is because their bodies reflect light like a mirror that attracts the crappie. Crappies are easily attracted to changes in light patterns,so the shiner minnow is fish attractor and a live crappie bait food source at the same time. Many times, they are attracted more to the light changes then the bait it’s self. Another good minnow to use is commonly called the “Missouri minnow”. i don’t use them so I won’t talk about them, but many fisherman swear by them.

Sometimes I will scent my crappie live bait and artificials. Get yourself a small empty pill container,chop a onion into very small pieces than fill the container about half full. Tip the end of your hook with a small piece of onion after you hook your minnow thru both the lower and upper lip. You will be surprised how this helps you out attracting the crappie to your bait. If you are using just a crappie jig place the jig an plastic in the bottle and shake it up.

A good worm to use is the small worms that crawl over your sidewalk after it rains, they are commonly called “angle worms” I am not fond of using worms as crappie live bait source but these are the best crappie live bait Worms that I have used.

The “maggot” is one of the most under used crappie live baits. The next little tip I am going to tell you about is not for someone weak of the stomach. Now Catch yourself a mudfish or carp and cut out a large piece from behind his head. Barry the carcass an inch under the ground. 7 days later dig him up. (Now here’s the disgusting part pick the maggots off the carcass and place them in a glass jar. And some white cornmeal into the jar. Now place the jar in the freezer for three weeks. (Don’t let your wife know what’s in it or it will be gone! Just kidding.) After three weeks take the maggots out of the freezer the maggots will be huge! Fish the maggots using a #4 gold hook with no bobber. Let the bait fall to the bottom slowly and wait for the fun! It won’t take long. Maggots are one of the best crappie live baits I have ever used but I don’t use them much because of obvious reasons.

Well, that about does it for my crappie livebait tips. Have fun and good fishing! And GOOD Luck!

Mark Fleagle is a serious fishing owner. Mark Is a dedicated fisherman with 30+ years of experience and has published numerous articles on fishing. He offers free fishing information and “how to articles at his websites. Crappie Live BaitVisit my website oldfishinghole.com and download a free copy of his “78 fishing discoveries unleashed”

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